Fleas can be difficult to control in vacant buildings. Factors contributing to the flea problem include TIME, TEMPERATURE, SEVERITY, CLEANLINESS, and CHANGES. Let's look at each and what can be done about them...

TIME:
Please allow time for the chemicals to work (usually 3 to 4 weeks). We have found that most flea problems in vacant buildings are solved with the first treatment if the proper amount of time is allowed. A second treatment may be necessary (fewer than 20% require a second treatment).

TEMPERATURE:
The warmer the temperature in the building the faster the fleas reproduce and develop. Ventilation or air conditioning may help.

SEVERITY:
Heavy populations of fleas do not occur quickly; neither can they be eliminated quickly. Either allow more time or expect the need for additional treatments.

CLEANLINESS:
Most people don't realize that flea larvae also require meals consisting of blood. They eat the undigested blood excreted by the adult fleas. If the building's floor surfaces are not vacuumed thoroughly (even hard-surface floors) an abundance of this "food" will remain available for the larvae and more of them will survive and mature into adult fleas. Vacuum the floor surfaces prior to treatment.

CHANGES:
When the main source of food for fleas is removed (the pet) the fleas are forced to change their habits, too. As the flea larvae mature they create a pupae case in which they will change into an adult flea. Unlike other insects, the adult flea does not exit the pupae case when it finishes this change. Instead, it hibernates and waits (up to 5 months) for a food source to wander by. This survival technique makes control in vacant buildings especially difficult. Since chemicals cannot penetrate this pupae case, something must be done to encourage the fleas to “pop out” where the insecticide and IGR can do its work. We have found that there is no substitute for activity in the vacant building. We recommend that the floors be vacuumed a few times and every room entered every week following treatment. (This is the most uncomfortable part of the process for owners of vacant buildings with fleas.)